Chris - I've seen those same notions - those perceptions induce a lot of fun (and frustration). We get the same around here, I'm sure a lot of fly fishers all over do. Personally I've had :

"Hey mister, there's no trout in those waters" ('thanks - for a moment I thought all there was here were carp and rock bass')
"Are you catching anything with THAT" (a couple teens noted just as I tagged into a walleye)
"Fly Fishing must be expensive" ('no, not really' ... as I laid out 2 calculations - 1 for bait/gear - 1 for fly rod of equivalent use)
"That looks hard" (so I handed him the rod, and after 10 minutes asked him "Is it" ..... 'No' was the response -- - wasn't casting great, but he was casting)
"Fly fishing is for the elite" (I'm farm raised .... elite don't quite fit that bill)

I'm from the same boat as you "If I can learn, anyone can .....". I promote flyfishing as much as I can - hopefully without looking like I'm over bearing. Yet I'm sure I look like a fly shop at times when I'm on the water (I try to avoid doing that). If people want to try, I have an open book policy to show 'em, and let 'em try. I also try to show that fly fishing ... is just fishing - by a different set-up. I also keep a box of madness handy to show just how ludicrous / complicated we can get just with warm and cold water fish (being kinda centered and land-locked, I think I'm safe from the salt - but one could throw that into the fray to show how really ludicrous things can get).

Hey - from Kitty Hawk in 1903 to Gusev Crater on Mars in 2004 .... 101 years accomplished a heck of a lot technology wise ..... maybe we can do something similar with fly fishing (FAOL's helping that along greatly) ....... But books, articles, and T.V. shows can only go so far to show that fly fishing isn't hard, costly - it isn't what history has built it up to be. Aside of that, they need to have a persons inkling of interest first to buy, watch, or read. It's the word of mouth, and a ... 'here, I'll show you' ... that will put those notions to H in a handbasket quicker than a pirate on a rum bottle (I know how fast navy would get to it).

(I've rambled a bit here) ....... my point ......... hmms, dunno ..... just bits and pieces that add up to reflect an unjust image of fly fishing .......... and doing my part to show otherwise.

Guilty ... and informing ...